22 Sep 2011

Papua miners prepared to strike until Freeport meets demands

7:14 am on 22 September 2011

A spokesperson for the thousands of miners on strike in Indonesia's Papua province says they'll remain on strike until their pay demands are met.

That follows reports that Freeport-McMoran is considering replacing the estimated eight to 11 thousand workers on a 30-day strike at its Grasberg site.

Annell Husband reports.

"The Freeport mine has the world's largest recoverable reserves of copper and is Indonesia's top tax payer. Juli Parorrongan says the workers can't understand why a company that makes such large profits pays its workers so little. He says unless their hourly wages are increased from between two and 11 US dollars to between 17 and 43 dollars, the workers are committed to continuing strike action beyond the intended month. Despite a Freeport statement that strikers won't be paid Mr Parorrongan says Indonesian law requires the company to pay them and if it fails to do so, the union will take it court. He says the first pay day since the strike began last Thursday is September the 28th."